Disregard These Myths About Root Canals! [BLOG]

Check out today’s blog, courtesy of our team at Carolina Bright Smiles in Hillsborough, NC where we do some mythbusting about a widely, although unnecessarily, feared dental treatment: the root canal!

Root Canals: The Necessary Evil Of Dentistry?

Each and every day, your mouth is under attack from harmful bacteria. Your body has its own natural defenses to fight it off on your behalf, and you’re doing your part to brush and floss like you’re supposed to.

But, there are times when this bacteria can win small battles, like getting inside your tooth and infecting your dental pulp.

This is when you would need to have a root canal.

It’s a process where your infected tooth is cleaned, an opening is made to remove the affected pulp inside the tooth, and the tooth is reinforced with a dental crown so the infection doesn’t return.

Sounds harmless, right?

Well, you would think. But in reality, this restorative treatment is seen by most people as a necessary evil. That’s because there are several myths that never seem to go away no matter how many times they’re debunked.

Today, we want to stress that yes, root canals are sometimes necessary, but a necessary ‘evil’ they are not! Root canals keep your smile intact and your teeth healthy!

3 Myths About Root Canals You Can Disregard Today!

Here are three popular myths about root canals you can feel free to disregard!

*Myth #1: Root canals are the most painful medical experience next to childbirth.

Okay, maybe no one really makes this claim directly. But with all the hype about how painful root canals are, you’d think that there are plenty of people out there who’d believe this is a fair comparison.

First, ask any mother out there if this myth is true, and they’d laugh heartily.

Second, the idea that root canals are very painful in general is just not accurate.

That’s, of course, if you’re in the right hands.

And you are in the right hands with Dr. Garrett and Dr. King in Hillsborough, NC!

For one thing, we offer dental sedation so you can feel calm, relaxed, and comfortable during your root canal treatment. And another, we use a local anesthetic at the start so your procedure is virtually painless.

We can’t speak for root canal therapy elsewhere, but we can speak for our own practice.

And here, this is a myth you can disregard for sure!

*Myth #2: Root canals are risky because they weaken teeth.

No, the risk regarding a root canal is choosing not to have one!

That’s because you’re not only dealing with an infection that could spread and cause more harm, but infection will make your enamel more brittle and weak, compromising your ability to keep that tooth intact.

After a tooth is cleaned thoroughly of all infection, it’s strengthened with some sort of restoration, commonly with a dental crown.

So the truth is that you need a root canal because your tooth has already been weakened by infection, not the other way around.

A root canal procedure works to prevent disastrous health problems because it’s eradicating infection that could otherwise get into your bloodstream and spread throughout your body. This is incredibly dangerous, which is why you should never scoff at a toothache. It could be the red flag you need to let you know it’s time to get to the dentist right away.